Flash Git
by BuckinghamAlice
Summary: The body of a "flash git" business man is found at his office and it's up to Alex, Gene and the rest of team to find his killer. There will be plenty of Galex moments scattered throughout!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer; I don't own any of the characters from Ashes to Ashes, that's all the BBC's doing. This is my first ever fanfic, so please be gentle when reviewing. Actually, don't, just be honest! I've got a fair way to go with this story, but I'm really enjoying writing it, so I hope you enjoy reading it too!**_****_

Chapter One;_****_

_ Alex was falling, again.  
This time, she didn't land in her bed, on her sofa, on the damp wood of the docks, on the cold linoleum floor of CID or on Gene Hunt. This time Alex plunged into icy cold water, sinking deeper into the cold and deeper into the dark. Despite feeling the weight of the water push her downwards, Alex burst through the surface gasping for air, her arms patting the water, as if it were a solid object with which she would be able to lift herself out of the cold. She kicked her legs in order to stay afloat and looked around, frantically searching for a clue as to where she was. The boats, the buildings, and the people- she was in the Thames.  
Alex willed herself to shout for help, to splash her arms, to scream, but she was powerless in this world. In this world, her everything had already been decided. With a calm breaststroke, she swam to the edge and looked up at the pavement to see Molly, with Evan, waving.  
"Are you staying Mum? Me and Evan are going, are you staying here?"  
Alex opened her mouth to tell her daughter that she wasn't staying, that she was going to come home with her and Evan, but she began to choke on water and it spilled out of her mouth.  
Molly shifted her weight onto one hip impatiently, much like Alex did on a daily basis, and opened her mouth to shout "Bolly! Bolly! Bolly!"_

Alex awoke with a start, shocked at hearing his voice come from Molly's body. Comforted by her familiar surroundings, she lay back onto the sofa. _What did that one mean? That Molly and Evan are giving up on me? Maybe I'm on life support? Maybe I really am stuck here and there's no way back?_ She felt unsure about the word 'stuck' as sometimes, often for whole hours, Alex Drake did not feel stuck. She felt content and happy, as if this was where she was meant to be. Of course, this was immediately followed by long, bleak periods of guilt, punishing whatever tiny part of her mind that had momentarily abandoned her little girl.  
"Don't go anywhere Molls, I'm not staying here. I promised you that I'm coming back to you, so please don't go anywhere Molly," Alex whispered to her daughter as she sleepily rolled onto her side, pulling the duvet up to under her chin. She shut her eyes.  
_ Round two, _she thought_.  
_ Her peace was interrupted by a loud and sudden banging at the door.  
"Bolly! You in there Bolly? This is no time to be shagging Thatcherite wankers, let me in!" Gene's voice was sharp, cutting through the silence of the flat and causing Alex's heart to flutter.  
She groaned, swinging her legs off of the sofa and glancing at the clock on the wall. Quarter to five, _bloody hell_. The door seemed far away as she padded through her flat. _If he's drunk I'll slap him, I'll actually slap him.  
_ "Sorry it took so long for me to answer, I had to wait for the Thatcherite wanker that I was shagging to climb out of the window," she said as she swung open the door, giving Gene an over exaggerated smile. _Will he ever let that go? It was his own fault, it could've been-_  
"'Ope he broke his bloody neck," Gene said quickly as he strode inside, trying to discreetly search for any signs that she wasn't joking. The thought of another man touching Alex made his stomach churn. _Come to think of it, the thought of me touching her makes my stomach churn._ Once satisfied, he clapped his hands and turned on his heel to face her, "Right Bolly Knickers, we've got ourselves a body for breakfast, so put on some slap and squeeze into those jeans of yours, I want the murdering scum caught and banged up in time for lunch so that we, as you and I, can get nice and pissed."  
Alex sighed, "Give me five minutes."  
Gene's eyes followed Alex's shape as she slunk off to the bathroom; the black shirt that she was wearing teased him by only just reaching her thighs. _Does she know that shirt was once mine?_ In his head he followed her, removing his clothes and stepping into the shower with her. He imagined kissing her neck and shoulders as he soaped her up, but in reality he rooted himself to his current spot, hands in pockets and waited. _What for?_

**********************************  
"Well yeah, that's what I said. I said 'Sorry love, but I don't trust anything that bleeds for a week and doesn't die', and if you've got any sense then you won't either" Ray warned, raising his eyebrows at Chris.  
"Yeah, but Shaz is-"  
"-The body is Richard Croft, 38, flash business git, one wife and one son. The security guard at his office found him this morning," Gene barked over them as he steered, _or swung_ Alex thought, the Quattro through the street.  
She opened her mouth to ask her boss how the man had died, but he beat her. _Am I that predictable? Or does he know me that well?_  
"Shot."

**********************************  
Alex shook her head at the pitiful sight before her. A middle aged man, no older than forty, was slumped over in his chair. The blood from the bullet hole had seeped through his white shirt to provide a target on his chest, however it was too late, someone had already taken their shot. His trousers and boxers had been pulled down, leaving him exposed to anyone who happened to walk into the office.  
"Bloody hell!" spluttered Ray as he walked in, "it's too early for this." He shook his head.  
"Finally!" Gene spat, looking past Ray to the approaching coroner, "What time d'ya call this?"  
"Eleven minutes past six" he answered flatly, moving past Gene to the body, seeming eager to get to work.  
Alex studied the coroner as he tested the body expertly. He wasn't the greying man that she had come to expect, he was young, tall, dark and, she was surprised to see, handsome. _Not my type, well, not anymore anyway._ Alex wasn't sure what her 'type' was anymore, or rather she was, but she chose not to think about it. _How can one man make everything so complicated? I thought I knew myself, but maybe he knows me better._ The coroner looked up to catch her staring and she gave him an embarrassed, apologetic smile. She sidled up next to Gene, "he's new," she said nodding to the coroner.  
"Is he?" _Shit, she noticed._ He puffed out his chest, now feeling self conscious and uneasy. It was only natural that she would make comparisons between the two men and Gene was aware that there were few to be made. _I'm tall too_.  
Alex rolled her eyes and strutted over to the handsome stranger. "Hi, you're new aren't you? I'm Di Drake," she said smiling and extending her hand, "but please, call me Alex. So, any idea what killed him?" She immediately cringed at her joke.  
"Well, it's taken all of my expertise, but I have carefully deduced that this man, was shot," he said smiling and taking Alex's hand, "I'm Stephen, Stephen Whitteth. I'm so sorry, I have to dash off, I'll send a full report to the station later. Anyway, it has been lovely, although brief, to meet you Alex. I hope we'll meet again, even if that means some poor soul has to die, is that wrong?"  
Alex laughed, "No, well, a bit, but I'm sure they'll get over it! Bye, Stephen."  
With a final smile to Alex and a nod to Ray who was standing by the door, he left.  
Gene crept up behind Alex, who was still watching the man leave, and stooped so that his head hovered above her shoulder and next to her ear. "When you've quite finished batting those eyelashes of yours Bolly, we've got a spotty security guard to question," he said as he swept towards to the door, his coat bellowing after him.  
"I was not batting my eyelashes, I was being friendly, it's a pass time that some of us choose to indulge ourselves in," Alex said dryly as she trotted to catch up with him. _Is he jealous? A few months ago he would've had every reason to be, but not now. There's no comparison._

****************************************  
"Ok, so your name is Michael Lawrenson?" Alex took the teenagers nervous nod as a signal to continue, "Can you just take us through your actions this morning please Michael?"  
"I ain't done no actions Miss, I've been on the long shift, twelve 'ours, since six yesterday evening. At 'alf five this mornin' I decided to do the final rounds, just checkin' in on everythin' before I clocked off, you know? And that's when I found him, Mr Croft, in his office."  
The young man, no older that eighteen, was obviously nervous and fidgeted in his seat; a typical sign that a person was lying, something that Gene Hunt did not fail to notice.  
"What's up with you? Got piles or something?" he fired, making Michael Lawrenson jump. "Tell us about last night Michael, not notice anything suspicious? No one coming and going? No gun shots?"  
"No, no sir, no gun shots, didn't 'ear a thing. Mr Croft was 'ere when I arrived at six, said he was workin' late, he 'as been a lot lately. At about three a girl arrived, an 'ooker, Cherish I think 'er name was, sayin' that she'd got a call from Mr Croft, askin' her to come 'ere. She was only in there a few minutes an' then she left," Michael exhaled, feeling that his job was now done.  
"And that was normal was it? Mr Croft inviting prostitutes to the office?" Alex quizzed him.  
"Yeah, he's done it a few times now, I didn't think nothing of it."  
"And the fact that she only stayed for a few minutes? What did you think of that?"  
"Well, I just thought he'd changed his mind or somethin', or that he'd...finished."  
"That's all it takes for some men Bolly, however, some of us keep things going for a bit longer, if you know what I mean?" Gene leant on the desk, turning to Alex and raising his eyebrow.  
"I always know what you mean DCI Hunt," she sighed impatiently, getting tired of this interview. "So, Michael, Mr Croft was here when you started your shift, at six yesterday evening and no one entered or left the building until the prostitute, Cherish, arrived at around three, leaving a few minutes later? And you didn't find the body until you were checking the building at half past five this morning?"  
"Why were you doing rounds? You've got CCTV, all you have to do is keep that seat warm," Gene interrupted before Michael had chance to confirm Alex's statement.  
"It's not working sir, see?" Michael turned on the screen in front of him to reveal nothing but a black, fuzzy picture.  
"Mr Croft's wallet is missing, know anything about that?"  
"No, no sir."  
"Ok, well thank you Michael, if there are any problems then we'll be in touch," Alex flashed a reassuring, gentle smile and turned on her heel to leave the offices, Gene at her side. _I love her most when she's like this, gentle and kind._


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer; I don't own any of the characters from Ashes to Ashes, that's all the BBC's doing. This is my first ever fanfic, so please be gentle when reviewing. Actually, don't, just be honest! I've got a fair way to go with this story, but I'm really enjoying writing it, so I hope you enjoy reading it too!**_**  
**_**I'm worried that this will seem a little slow to get going for some people, but I promise that I'll make it worth it!**

**Chapter Two;**

"The toms name is Cherish, real name Cheryl Bailey. Me and Ray found her hanging round a car park," Chris informed DCI Hunt and DI Drake as they walked towards the interview room.

"Waiting for a ride, eh Guv?" joked Ray, chuckling even more after receiving a smirk from his boss.

Alex shot the three men a warning look. _Talk about misogynists. _"Ray, Chris, while DCI Hunt and I interview Cheryl can you please track down the coroner's report? We'll need the time of death in order to check out any alibis."

_I love her most when she's like this_, Gene thought, _professional and focused, powerful._

When they reached the interview room, before heading inside, Alex turned around to face Gene, ready to tell him to respect the girl behind the door, to be gentle and empathise that she lives a tough life, but she'd misjudged how close he was to her and gasped at how close their faces were now.

"Oh, Gene, I'm sorry I-"

"Can't get enough, can you Bolly?" he joked, but his tone soon changed, "Listen Bols, I was wondering if, tonight, or whenever really, you fancied doing something?" Gene blushed, a rare occurrence. _When it comes to her, the Gene Genie's magic is useless. _

"You were wondering if I fancied doing something whenever? Come on DCI Hunt, surely you can take the reins more firmly than that?" _I bet he can_, she thought. Alex enjoyed teasing him from time to time, it made her tingle. Part of her wished he would give in, the other wishing that he would hold out, so that the teasing could continue.

"Fine, tonight, me and you Bolls, bottle of plonk and the telly, your flat." The only time Gene Hunt had ever offered to have a cosy night in with a woman was when he knew he'd get something in return. With Alex he was doubtful that he'd get anything in return, apart from maybe a teasing pout and a raised eyebrow, but just one of those looks was enough for him.

"Erm yeah, ok, that sounds..." How did that sound? Curled up on the sofa with Gene Hunt? "...lovely. It sounds lovely."

"Well I would've gone with sexy Bolly, but whatever does it for you. Now let's interview this tart so that we can bang her up and spend the rest of the day waiting in anticipation for this evening's entertainment," he was back to the usual DCI Hunt now as he pushed open the door.

********************************************

"Shall I tell you what I think, and save us all some time? I think that you got a call from Mr Croft asking you to come to his office to give him a little treat. You know Mr Croft, he uses you lot regularly, so you know he's a flash git with a few bob and you knew what you were going to do to get yourself a nice juicy tip. So you turn up at his office, distract him with what that mouth of yours can do and then you shoot him dead in his chair. Then you grab his wallet and get out of there, back to your grubby little life."  
The case was open and shut as far as Gene was concerned, _a greedy tom_.

"No! No that's not what happened!" Cheryl Bailey shouted back at him. She was a young girl, eighteen or nineteen Alex had guessed, quite pretty beneath the heavy makeup. " I didn't sh-"

She was interrupted by Chris' head poking from around the door, "We tracked down that coroner's report Boss, M'am, time of death was around one this morning."

"Thanks Chris," Alex smiled and then turned back to face Cheryl, "Ok Cheryl, tell us what happened, from the time that you received the call from Mr Croft to when you left his office."

"I'd been with a punter, was with him until about half past one and then he dropped me back at the house. I live there with the other girls. When I got in Trace told me that they'd had a call from Croft and that I could have him if I wanted him. She knows that I've been struggling a bit and he's known for giving big tips, so I went off to his offices. I had to walk, so it took me a good hour or so, maybe an hour and a half. When I got there the lad behind the desk was just staring into space, so I went to Croft's office, Trace had told me which number it was. When I walked in there he was in the chair, trousers round his ankles, everything out, ready to go, but then I saw all the blood. I panicked for a bit, thought about calling you lot, but Trace had always told me to walk away if anything ever went wrong. She said that you lot don't believe girls like us."

"Sounds like a wise woman, for a tart," Gene retorted, sniffing.

Ignoring him, Alex continued the interview, "Do you know the name of the client that you were with before you went to Mr Croft's office Cheryl?"

"Yeah, Geoffrey Hughes, I see him once a week usually."

"Ok, thank you Cheryl, we'll need you to wait here, at the station, while we track down Mr Hughes so that he can confirm your alibi, ok?"

The girl nodded. She looked small and frightened in the chair, innocent even.  
Alex and Gene stood up and left the room together, walking towards CID.

*******************************************

"Check out her alibi? We know she did it, tarts aren't known for their strict moral code" Gene said, jingling the change in his pocket.

"No, we don't know anything yet, but going with gut instinct, I don't think she did it."

"We've tracked down the coroner's report Guv, and time of death is thought to be around one this morning." They were greeted by Chris, eagerly informing them.

"Thanks Chris. Geoffrey Hughes, you and Ray need to see if you can contact him and ask him to confirm that he was with a prostitute called Cherish last night, until half past one." Alex followed Gene into his office. His scent lingered in the air behind him. It was warm, familiar and comforting. _Not to mention manly_. She perched on the edge of his desk, stretching out her legs and watching him as his hung his jacket and ran his hands through his hair. She always seemed to forget how tall he was, despite seeing him every day. His white shirt pulled slightly across the back of his broad shoulders and Alex imagined hooking her arms around them. _Stop._

"Apart from your constant struggle to stay away from me, is there any reason why your perfect posterior is perched on my desk Bolly?" He wanted her to stay there forever, talking to him, teasing him; argue with him, whatever she wanted to do. Her scent filled the room, light but sweet, sexy but subtle.

"I just..." _Why am I here?_ She had become used to following Gene into his office, usually in order to have an argument, but lately things had been different, they'd taken to sitting in his office talking and joking with each other. Alex enjoyed herself and always looked forward to the tender smile he'd give her as she'd leave to go back to her desk or to head to Luigi's with Shaz and the rest of the team. "...er, I just wondered if you wanted me to cook tonight?"

"Cook? You want to cook me a meal Bolly? When did we get married?" He teased her, perhaps more harshly than he had intended, but really the thought of Alex cooking for him, looking after him, made him happy, happier than he had felt in a long time.

"You're right," Alex gave an embarrassed laugh, "you're right, I'm sure a few bottles of cheap wine will suffice." Alex could feel her cheeks burn as she walked out of Gene's office and sat at her desk. _You, Alex Drake, are an idiot. A complete fool. Cooking for Gene Hunt?_ She felt sharp pangs of guilt as she thought about how she should be at home, cooking for her little girl. _Molly wouldn't be eating, she never did when she was worried about something._

Snapping Alex out of her thoughts Chris and Ray burst through the doors of CID.

"Guv! M'am! We tracked down Geoffrey Hughes, he's confirmed everything, the tom was with him until half one last night."

"Just begged us not to tell his wife," Ray sniggered.

Alex looked over to Gene, giving him a look that said 'I told you so'. "I think we should back to Croft's office, we might have missed something."


End file.
